Cutting Cable

[Officeguy]

If you have an internet connection find a friend with Shaw TV and if they will allow you use of their PW log onto shaw free range and hook your computer / laptop to the TV with a HDMI cable.....I use this at my cabin for TV, I have Shaw TV at home.

 

[felixthecat]

The tricky part about Kodi is the learning curve. Once you have it and stick with reputable builders you can get virtually anything available that is on the internet.

This is where you could share what are those builders and steps to set it up.

The appeal of those prepackaged "Kodi boxes" was that a non-technical person could use them. If there is a simple way to use a platform, people will. If not, the majority will use simpler alternatives.

This is not a religious debate, no reason to get worked up. If you have an actionable recommendation, I'll treat it on its merits same way as from any other poster.

 

[badbadboy]

I had hoped this thread would help me clarify my own options moving forward. Now I am more confused than ever.

I have always stayed away from Torrents. Got stung in there once trying to download stuff for free that ended up being like Limewire way back when.

I'm hoping to to have either a USB stick or a small external box that will provide some sort of semblance of what I currently have with a Shaw box and an Apple TV.

 

[badbadboy]

BBB, It really depends on your needs. It's best to stay away from torrents unless you subscribe to a paid VPN service. In Canada, streaming is currently legal even if you stream from torrents. Some apps including Kodi stream from torrents but it's still legal (for now) in Canada.

My suggestion to you and everyone else, if you insist on having a stand-alone device is buy your box or USB stick from somewhere locally or from Amazon where you can easily return the item. If have recently bought one myself with very good and positive reviews. It had great specs but it was shit. It died after about an hour of use. That's another thing to consider because all of these boxes are from China. You might want to try the Amazon Fire Stick. A lot of people have had success with it.

Incidentally, I'm not sure if you're Asian, but there are a few premium Asian TV boxes with basic specs that are quite reliable. Kodi can be installed if you wish but many of these boxes, while stable run an older version of Android, like KitKat and many developers are abandoning Kodi Jarvis which is an older and lighter Kodi.

Thanks for your reply. I'm almost there and have had a monthly VPN for a few years for biz and US purchases unavailable in Canada.

I don't need to buy any hardware is what you are saying and just need to use my Apple play to beam it to my display / monitor.

 

[badbadboy]

I'm sorry. I can't comment on Apple Play as I am not familiar with it. What I do know is Apple is very restrictive and limited.

Yah it is. More research required but thanks for putting me on a different tack than an external box.

 

[Damaged]

I'll add my 2 cents for what it's worth. I had a couple of old PC's kicking around that were windows machines I used for media streaming around the house. They were small slow windows machines that used Nvidia Ion processors, the plus were they were silent.

I rebuilt the machines with a single step process that installs a light version of Linux called Openelec with Kodi built in. Essentially turning the PC into a Kodi box. The next trick was learning to install all of the add-ons required to get the channels and movie streaming you most likely desire.

The main issues I see are:
a) The add-ons regularly change so what worked well for months is obsolete and not working later. This requires you to source what is the latest and working well.
b) I haven't found a reliable way to only stream HD movies. Example: Fairly new movie is out in HD but only the first 3-4 sources listed are HD streams, the rest are SD streams (Standard Definition-low quality). It will often skip over the first 3 streams as no channels are available and lock onto an SD stream. Not what I want. I would rather wait 30-40 minutes for an HD stream than watch SD. I never watch SD.

I liken the current Kodi situation to how it was when you could get the Free satellite channels from the USA with a hacked card or in the later days a software load. It would work well for weeks or months sometimes and then stop and you would need to get your card upgraded or load a new firmware.

In my opinion Kodi is fine for a replacement for TV if you hardly ever watch TV and are somewhat technical and willing to fiddle with it on a regular basis. Otherwise for me it's a good toy to have in addition to cable.

 

[VanessainVictoria]

I tried cutting my cable today but the Shaw rep said I wasn't paying for cable, it was included in my internet price. :noidea:

 

[Robert Upndown]

I still have Shaw but use it less and less. I use Google Chromecast Ultra ($90) from my phone or laptop. Streams directly to my TV through my wireless network and I can watch anything that is on the screen of my phone or Laptop in 4K. You need a 5G wireless router for best results, but that is easy.
Watch Netflix, You Tube, Crave, Porn, the News anything you can get on your phone or laptop you can cast directly to your TV.

Bob

 

[Damaged]

You should try getting Kodi build like Durex and Simple Build. Once installed, it's ridiculously easy to update and you don't need to be technical minded.

Your assessment is incorrect. I recommend anyone use Kodi who watches a lot of movies and TV shows. As stated above, one just needs a good build like Durex. Having said that, there's been a recent crackdown on IPTV channels and content is becoming scarce. Even Android apps won't help you because they use the same sources but fewer than Kodi does.

Lol you say my assessment is incorrect and that it's good for people who like to watch movies and then say content is becoming scarce. Which is it.

 

[Darlingrococo]

take a 12' piece of coaxial cable and connect one end to your tv and bare about 3 or 4 " at the other end so just the copper core is visible. Scan the channels, you will find up to 17 channels................CBC and CTV will be the clearest you have ever seen them. FREE

Thats likely using analog signal, and they've been systematically removing it from their system and only providing digital for awhile. Most areas you'll find that disappear within the next year or so.

 

[Claire Monet]

I really appreciate this thread (though I haven’t read all of it).

I’ve been without a tv for close to 7 years and am now considering one since I’ve moved to a place that’s better set up for a wall-mounted unit. I can use the advice!!

From what I gather kodi seems like the way to go. ? I was with Shaw for internet and haven’t set it up yet. Is it worth it to switch to a different provider? I need internet, a home phone, and basic tv. I have Netflix on my laptop. Feedback welcome!

 

[sybian]

I really appreciate this thread (though I haven’t read all of it).

I’ve been without a tv for close to 7 years and am now considering one since I’ve moved to a place that’s better set up for a wall-mounted unit.

I'm satellite only for tv, but if you go with a wall mount tv, get one that swings away from the wall.
If you get one that is to close to the wall it's mounted on....you'll be plugging in your Apple TV box by brail.
My hand is to wide / big to fit behind my tv in the bedroom , so if I move the apple box, it's a twenty minute frustration for me....so I just got an extra cord, so the device can be moved between the two tv's.

 

[Addison Cortez]

My Shaw bill is simply too big for the couple of channels I occasionally watch. I'm considering getting rid of it. I'm mostly only interested in news programs and I want to keep my internet access but not necessarily with Shaw. What are the cheaper option?

sell your tv :laugh: I did this years ago

 

[NEbaD]

They still have cable?

 

[Addison Cortez]

^ :laugh: :thumb:

 

[sybian]

sell your tv :laugh: I did this years ago

......but my iPad screen is to small......Porn Hub is blurry enough as it is.

 

[Addison Cortez]

......but my iPad screen is to small......Porn Hub is blurry enough as it is.

TBH I wish I had a tv for gaming. I use my laptop to watch Netflix (and porn) and it sucks!!! I don't have anything to game on, sadly ...which is exactly why I sold my tv, otherwise all I would ever do is sit around gaming or watching tv!! op2: (or masturbating and I waste my life doing that enough :laugh ...although, when I do have access to (free) cable I usually just leave it on the weather and never actually watch it. Unless I am gaming, Netflix, or porn, tvs are a waste of my life so, for me to pay for cable (or satellite) would be a waste of my money, 100%.

 

[80watts]

Cutting cable depend on whether you have Cat 5, Cat5E or Cat6 or coaxil cable. You need a tool to splice the ends of the cable (for the Cat cable), you can get that at home depot etc. search online utube for videos. on how to cut the cable.

 

[Wilsondrake]

Terrarium TV is ok except for annoying pop ups, definitely a reality. Future of Terrarium is not stable, recently rescued and seems fine at present.

Been there done that, had the worst experience with Terrarium. I am now using Kodi, though I am not convinced to the very best but with the availability of Kodi addons and skins atleast I get to see a good face over my TV screen. Still hunting for good media players. Any suggestions ?

 

[sevenofnine]

my next move is to cancel everything, upgrade to a wifi smart tv and
stream netflixs god there is a lot to watch on netflixs,

and I like talk radio so with a streaming radio app, tons of talk radio from news to sports.